HW2 Chpt 4 & 8 Eth Subjectivism & Utilitarianism

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Name: HW Chapter 4: Ethical Subjectivism Ethics HW on Ethical Subjectivism (Note: Ethical Subjectivism is a WEAK and potentially dangerous type of justification for moral claims. Use this HW to explore WHY that is the case.) 1. (Recap) Respond to at least one of the following questions: o What is a specific question (related to our class) that stands out to you at the moment (from class, the reading, etc.)? Why does it stand out? o What statement , made by another student, stands out to you at the moment? Why does it stand out? o What is one concept on which you gained clarity in our most recent class? What is one concept that is still unclear for you, and how can you go about clarifying it? o What is one philosophical question you have asked someone outside of our class? What did you learn by listening to their response? A specific question that stands out the most to me so far is “Is there anything wrong with being selfish?” . The reason why is selfishness is not always a bad thing. It’s our nature to be selfish to prioritize our needs before other’s needs. Being selfish only becomes bad when you are only looking at your personal benefits and ignoring how your actions might affect other’s physically and mentally. Selfishness is acceptable when you need to do something that necessary for your well-being but barely affect others. Putting yourself prior others can be a good way to take care of your well being, improve your skills, and become a better version of yourself. 2. In your own words, or in words directly from our class book, finish these statements: o “According to ethical subjectivism, morality is determined by individual perspectives .” o “According to an ethical subjectivist, the ONLY thing that determines whether something is morally permissible or not is personal beliefs .” 3. Is the author, Judith Boss, ultimately arguing that you should be an ethical subjectivist OR that you should not be an ethical subjectivist? (Hint: Be careful here2. Sometimes the author’s language confuses people. The answer is: “Should NOT!” – look for it... Also check the short section that comes just before the Ethical Subjectivism chapter in the book.) - Judith Boss is ultimately arguing that you should be an ethical subjectivist. She makes the clear statement that people cannot be mistaken about what is morally right or wrong because there is no universal moral standards. Everyone has their own way of thinking as well as their own opinions. What is right for you might be wrong for another person depending on respective feelings or opinions. No one is right or wrong, it is all matter of individual’s preferences. 4. Once you have identified the author’s conclusion /assessment/evaluation regarding ethical subjectivism (in the above question), write out as many premises (the reasons and analysis she uses to support that conclusion) as you can find throughout the chapter. (By doing this, you are starting to identify the elements of her argument /reasoning.) (Label “descriptive” premises - matters of fact – with a D) (Label “prescriptive” premises – value/ought to claim – with a P). - Descriptive D: + Opinions are not right or wrong. + Tolerance is a universal moral principle. + Ethical does not necessarily entail tolerance. + The statement that a person believes something to be right. + There are no universal moral truths, only individual moral preferences or truths based on each person’s own opinion and feelings. - Descriptive P: + You should do what feels right for you. + People’s ought to tolerate other’s feelings and lifestyle. + People disagree about what is right and what is wrong. + If a person sincerely believes something to be morally correct for him or her, then this causes it to be morally true. + Personal tastes or feelings are the only standard. 5. Reflect: Do you agree with the author’s conclusion/assessment/evaluation regarding ethical subjectivism? Why or why not? Use support from the chapter (as premises) to back up your position. - I do agree with the author’s conclusion regarding ethical subjectivism. I agree because everyone has their own ways of thinking and their own opinions on all different types of topics. Morality is determined by one’s own personal feelings. What is right or wrong depends on their personal taste, such as taste of music or taste of food. Judith uses the analogy of the blind men and the elephant as an example of ethical subjectivism. The blind men come up with different description of the elephant. The “elephant” is whatever someone believe it to be, in other words, it is each person’s imagination. 6. What else did you find interesting / surprising in this chapter? Explain. - In this chapter something I found interesting is that ethical subjectivism is commonly mistaken for the ethics of tolerance and respect for others. It has been commonly used to support a statement such as "People ought to tolerate other people’s feelings and lifestyles." ; however, ethical subjectivism is not appropriate to support a statement that contains a universal moral principle. 7. Generate an inquiry/philosophical question related to the reading and write it out. ©Kimber 2023
- Will there ever be a time when everyone has the same beliefs as with each other on many topics? HW Chapter 8: Utilitarianism ETHICS HW on Utilitarianism (Note: Utilitarianism is a STRONG type of justification for moral claims. Use this HW to explore WHY that is the case.) 1) In your own words, or in words directly from our class book, finish these statements: a. “According to utilitarianism, morality is determined by its consequences .” b. “According to a utilitarian, the most moral choice is the one that generates/produces/yields the greatest good .” 2) Create a chart where you identify PLEASURES & pains you experience this week. Give each pleasure and pain a number to indicate its pleasure value or pain value. (For example: I am eating a delicious piece of pizza, and that’s a +20 out of a possible +100 units of pleasure; I got bit by a mosquito and now it is itchy, and that’s -15 units of pleasure out of a possible -100 units of pleasure.) (If you use negative pleasure units to indicate pain as I did in this example, you can put all your data on one chart or one line.) Pleasure Pain Go to the beach to watch sunset (+80) Traffic jam (-50) Go shopping (+70) Lose my wallet (-60) Eat my favorite food (+50) Get my hand burnt while cooking (-80) 3) Do non-human animals deserve ethical treatment – or only humans? What does it mean to treat animals ethically? Can you think of any examples? How is this like or different from the ethical treatment of humans? - Yes, non-human animals deserve ethical treatment. Treating animals ethically means you treat them with the same and respect and care you would a human. Treating animals ethically involves in ensuring their well-being such as providing them food and shelter. For instance, it is morally wrong when animals are used for any experiment purposes. The difference from the ethical treatment of humans is that animals are not given the same right as humans. Human ethics has complex morals like justice, equality, freedom, which animals do not have. a. Explain how you can use utilitarianism to enhance your response to this question. - In utilitarian ethics, treating animals ethically means considering the consequences of human’s actions on animals. Ethical treatment of animals based on utilitarianism is minimizing unnecessary suffering and maximizing well-being. 4) Does it make sense to talk about treating the earth ethically? What would it be like to treat the earth ethically? Are humans treating the earth ethically right now? Have they ever done so? Are you? Explain – and use examples. - Yes, I believe it totally make sense to treat the earth ethically. Treating the Earth ethically involes actions that minimize harm to the environment like no littering, conserve water, recycle, etc. Nowadays, humans are not treating the earth ethically right since environmental issues caused by humans are still existing. For example, climate change is getting worse due to human activities have released large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every day. I have been protecting the environment by doing little things such as recycling bottles and trying to conserve water. a. Explain how you can use utilitarianism to enhance your response to this question. - Utilitarianism applied to the treatment of the Earth by considering the outcomes. From utilitarian perspective, treating the Earth ethically means avoiding actions that cause harm to the environment and encourage positive actions to protect the environment. 5) In the prompts below, you will see some important Critical Thinking (CT) Outcomes/Objectives written in bold. The questions are structured to help you see how you can use them to analyze and evaluate big questions, so pay extra attention to them as you answer. a. (CT) Explain the question , problem, or issue: “Is it morally acceptable to euthanize people who have terminal illnesses and who want to end their lives? Why or why not?” - I believe it morally right to euthanize people who have terminal illnesses and who want to end their lives. This is because they are suffering from pain every day and their survival chance is extremely low. The longer they are still alive, the more they must go through hard times in pain. Thus, they have every right to decide whether to stay fighting with their illnesses with no hope or put an end to their lives. b. NOW : Clarify your initial response by explaining exactly what makes this issue a moral dilemma . That is, explain which universal moral principles are at stake in this dilemma. Underline the universal moral principles in your reply. - The thing that makes this issue a moral dilemma because it is the situation in which people need to make difficult choice. Universal moral principles are at stake in this dilemma including autonomy, freedom, and respect . Autonomy supports a person's right to make decisions ©Kimber 2023
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